Community Corner

City Offers Tips for Flag Display on Memorial Day

Memorial Day is Monday, May 26th. Many Americans will choose to display the flag on this day, and so we take this opportunity to share some information about the proper display of the "Stars and Stripes." The United States Flag Code stipulates that as the symbol of a living country, the flag is considered in itself a living thing and should be properly displayed and cared for.

Please remember to:

  • Raise the flag briskly. Lower it ceremoniously.
  • Never allow the flag to touch the ground or floor.
  • Do not fly the flag in bad weather, unless it is an all-weather flag.
  • The flag can only be flown at night if properly illuminated.
  • Otherwise, it should only be flown from sunrise to sunset.
  • The flag should always be allowed to fall free.
  • The flag should never be used to carry, store, or deliver anything.
  • Never fly the flag upside down except to signal an emergency.
  • The flag should never be used as clothing, bedding, or drapery.
  • Red, white, and blue bunting may be used as decoration instead, with the blue on top, white in the middle, and red below.
  • The flag should never be part of a uniform, but a flag patch or lapel pin can be part of a police or other uniform.
  • The flag should not be used to cover a statue or monument.
  • The flag should not be used to cover a ceiling.
  • Advertising banners should not be hung from the same staff as a flag.
  • The flag should not appear on napkins, boxes, or other disposable items, nor should it be embroidered on cushions, handkerchiefs, or similar objects.
  • The flag should never be carried flat or horizontally, but always aloft and free.
  • Care should be taken not to let the flag get torn, dirty, or damaged.
  • The flag should never have placed upon it, nor attached to it, any mark, insignia, letter, word, figure, design, picture, or drawing.
—City of Imperial Beach


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